“My career didn't go into super stardom when I got it. I've
been able to grow and get better.” Joanna Garcia

Teen Choice Award nominated American actress of Cuban descent
Joanna Garcia began acting on stage as a child before making her
television debut in an episode of Nickelodeon's hit show “Clarissa
Explains It All” (1992). She became well known to TV audiences
and picked up her Teen Choice nomination in 2005 for her portrayal of
Reba's daughter, Cheyenne, on the WB's successful comedy show “Reba”
(2001-2007). Grace also had recurring roles in the popular shows
“Party of Five” (1998) and “Freaks and Geeks”
(2000) and acted in the Emmy winning miniseries “From the Earth
to the Moon” (1998) and the TV film “Holy Joe”
(1999). Other television shows in which she has appeared as a guest
include “Dawson's Creek,” “Providence,”
“Opposite Sex” and “Boston Public.” Garcia's
movie credits include “American Pie 2,” “Not
Another Teen Movie” (both 2001), “A-List” (2006)
and “Parental Guidance Suggested” (2007). Her more recent
acting jobs include portraying Megan in episodes of the series
“Privileged” (2009), Bree in “Gossip Girl”
(also 2009) and Parker in the TV movie “Revenge of the
Bridesmaids” (2010). She currently plays Mia in the series
“Better with You.”

In her spare time, the actress volunteers her time teaching
English as a second language to students in Los Angeles. She has an
organization called We Reach that helps young women establish and
reach goals.

Tijuana

Childhood and Family:

In Tampa, Florida, Joanna Leanna Garcia was born on August 10,
1979, to a gynecologist and a homemaker. She has a brother named
Michael, who is a medical student. After graduating from Florida's
Tampa Catholic High School, where she was crowned homecoming queen,
Joanna spent a year studying at Florida State University before
moving to Hollywood to become an actress. She is a member of the
Delta Delta Delta sorority. Joanna, who is of Cuban ancestry, has a
Chihuahua named Tijuana.

Not Another Teen Movie

Career:

Joanna Garcia had her first taste of performing as a child when
she auditioned for a local theater production and won the lead role.
She was immediately bit by the acting bug but her parents' emphasis
on her studies prevented the future actor to turn professional at the
time. To feed her passion, she participated in local plays. It was in
high school that Garcia was spotted by Nickelodeon. After this, she
traveled between Tampa and Montreal, Canada, to star as Samantha in
the TV series “Are You Afraid of the Dark” (1994-1996).
She had also previously appeared in a 1992 episode of the popular
series “Clarissa Explains It All” (also shown on
Nickelodeon).

Garcia made her television movie debut in 1997's “Love's
Deadly Triangle: The Texas Cadet Murder,” a based-on-true story
starring Holly Marie Combs and David Lipper. She then received a
three episode role in the drama “Second Noah”
(1996-1997). She also appeared as Julie Shepard in the miniseries
“From the Earth to the Moon” (1998), which won an Emmy
for Outstanding Miniseries.

After arriving in Los Angeles, Garcia landed a recurring role on
the popular series “Party of Five,” where she was cast as
Claudia's (played by Lacy Chabert) friend. She also acted with John
Ritter and Meredith Baxter in the television drama “Holy Joe”
(1999) and landed guest spots in shows like “Dawson's Creek,”
“Any Day Now,” “Pacific Blue” and
“Providence.” In 2000, Garcia appeared as Vicki Appleby,
a freshman cheerleader who spent seven minutes in Heaven with the
ultimate geek, Bill (played by Martin Starr), on five episodes of
“Freaks and Geeks.”

Garcia next guest starred in such TV series as “Opposite
Sex,” where she became a close friend of Allison Mack, “Boston
Public,” “Go Fish” and “Going to California.”
She also appeared in the motion pictures “American Pie 2”
(2001), a sequel to the 1999 box office hit “American Pie,”
and “Not Another Teen Movie,” (also 2001) opposite Chyler
Leigh, Chris Evans, Jaime Pressly, Eric Christian Olsen and Mia
Kirshner.

Garcia, however, may be best recognized as the oldest daughter,
Cheyenne, on The WB hit sitcom “Reba” (2001-2007),
which starred Reba McEntire as her mom. She was nominated for a Teen
Choice for Choice TV Actress - Comedy in 2005 for her performance.
She also played Fiona in an episode of the comedy series “What
I Like About You” (2004), voiced Liddane for an episode of the
cartoon series “Family Guy” (2005), had a supporting role
in the film “A-List” (2006) and costarred with Mika
Boorem and Summer Glau in the TV film “The Initiation of Sarah”
(2006). In 2007, she was featured as Sweetie Pie in “Parental
Guidance Suggested,” a sketch comedy film about the
embarrassments and joys of teen sex. She also starred as Hope in the
television series “Welcome to the Captain” (2007), Megan
in the series “Privileged” (2008-2009), and Bree in
episodes of “Gossip Girl” (2009). She currently stars in
the series “Better with You” (2010).

JoAnna Garcia has added an adorable little flower to her family garden!The Reba actress and her husband Nick Swisher shared the first photo of their four-week-old daughter, Emerson, on Twitter Tuesday...